Getting here
The Hilo International Airport code is ITO.
Effective from early June 2010, Hilo again will be served with direct daily flights from Los Angeles (LAX) and weekly flights from San Francisco (SFO). Continental Airlines will be gracing the Hilo skies. Also Continental and United have merged so you have lots of connections to most US cities. You still have the option of flying to Honolulu to make connections with most major carriers so getting to and from Hilo is never going to be a problem.
The complete trip time ranges from 8.5 hours to 13 hours. Delta, United, US Airways, American, Alaskan and Hawaiian are the major US carriers serving Hawaii with connecting service on either Hawaiian or go/Mokulele airlines.
Roundtrip fares from Los Angeles and San Francisco tend to cost $475 to $600, while flights from New York average out at $600 to $750. (Rates as of first quarter 2010). American Airlines tends to have slightly lower fares than its competitors, as it does on many domestic routes. Fares doing the summer as in many destinations are higher than the spring or fall months.
US Airways flights often have U.S. connections such as Phoenix and Las Vegas, as well as the stop in Honolulu.
Major U.S. airlines flying into Honolulu include
Beware of short connection times at Honolulu International, as the airport is frequently crowded and the “Wiki Wiki” shuttle service (soon to be replaced by moving walkways) can be painfully slow.
Airlines shuttling from Honolulu to Hilo are:
Typical roundtrip prices, if booked separately from the mainland flight, are $140-180. (There usually are no savings by doing this.)
Kona International (KOA) is the other large airport on the Big Island. Drive time between the two airports is about 2.5 hours.
All major rental car companies service the two airports. Rentals typically run $225 to $350 for midsized cars and about $450 for SUVs. (If you are going to the Mauna Kea observatories, an SUV or other four-wheel drive vehicle is required.)
International travel
Major foreign carriers flying into Honolulu include:
